App Takes on Emergency Alert Duties in Mississippi

Natural disasters can be hard to predict and devastating to the affected. That’s why the Mississippi Department of Health is looking to gain a potentially life-saving edge using technology. On Oct. 4, 2013 the department, in partnership with its e-government partner Mississippi Interactive, a division of NIC, launched MS Ready.

The emergency preparedness mobile app offers Mississippi residents alerts and a game plan for natural disasters and man-made threats. Among the app’s list of notable features are push notifications of real-time emergency alerts, emergency checklists and connections to the department’s Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pages. Liz Sharlot, the department’s communications director, said the app -- which cost about $10,000 to create -- adds one more tool to help residents and represents a proactive approach to state emergencies. “Why not focus on an emergency preparedness app that really is just focused on emergencies so that when an emergency happens it’s just another way to reach people?” Sharlot asked.